“This is why I love fitness and health. It does not live in the gym. What we do, what we take on mentally in a workout that scares us translates in our lives. It translates in our courage out there.” – Jen Widerstrom

Jen grew up outside of Chicago and competed in gymnastics growing up. She then transitioned to track and field and competed in throws for the University of Kansas. From there, she started fitness modeling and eventually fell in love with training others. She appeared on American Gladiators in 2008 and she has been a trainer on NBC’s The Biggest Loser since 2015. She’s also been doing CrossFit since 2012 and made appearances on the CrossFit Horsepower Regional team in 2013 and 2014. We caught up for a workout at CrossFit Horsepower while I was in town recently and although this was only the second time I’ve been around Jen in person, she is incredibly down to earth, genuine and easy to get to know as I’m sure you’ll hear in this episode.

In this episode we discuss:

Her childhood growing up outside of Chicago, and being a college athlete at the University of Kansas

Her introduction into CrossFit

Training for health versus training for fitness and competition

Losing her identity after college athletics and her path to eventually finding her passion and purpose

If you like this episode, please subscribe to Pursuing Health on iTunes and give it a rating. I’d love to hear your feedback in the comments below and on social media using the hashtag #JFHealth. I look forward to bringing you future episodes with inspiring individuals and ideas about health every other Tuesday.

Disclaimer: This podcast is meant to share the experiences of various individuals. It does not provide medical advice, and it is not a substitute for advice from your physician or health care professional.